


Beastly Hearts

by ann_jay009



Category: Midnight Poppy Land (Webcomic)
Genre: F/M, Face-Sitting, Fairy Tale Retellings, Loss of Virginity, Shapeshifters - Freeform, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:13:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24799000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ann_jay009/pseuds/ann_jay009
Summary: Part of the Summer Collab, a Notebook Worthy Kiss.
Relationships: Tora/Poppy
Comments: 7
Kudos: 76





	Beastly Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> Lilydusk's guidelines for Fan Creations:
> 
> Fanwork creator is free to create any kinds of fan creations and share them on any public or private platform as long as the creator acknowledges that:  
> 1\. No profit is to be made from fan creation.  
> 2\. Any resemblance that the original piece bears to fan creation is coincidental and unintentional,  
> 3\. Fan creation is to be a transformative work, derived from a single idea, a single sketch, or a small percentage of the original piece.

“Mama, tell me another story!”

“Cara, you’ve had three stories tonight. Just one more and after that, it’s bedtime. Promise?”

The little girl in bed squealed with delight as she nodded her head, she knew exactly the story she wanted her mother to tell. 

“The Beast! Tell me the story of the Beast!”

Her mother smiled tenderly at her daughter and kissed the top of her head as she tucked her back into her bed.

“Once upon a time, there was a young girl who got lost in the woods during a snowstorm…”

______________

Poppy was trying to run through the snowstorm, she could hear the wolves approaching fast. How such a snowstorm was even possible in the middle of summer, she didn't know. She had heard these woods were enchanted, but she had never quite believed it. Suddenly, she tripped on a root and fell flat on her face. Something was underneath her. No, not something, someone. What she thought was a root, was a leg. Next to her was a dead man, propped against a tree. His lower half was completely covered in snow and he was clutching a black book against his cold chest. As if it was calling her, Poppy pulled the book from the dead man’s hands and opened it. As if in a trance, she recited the words she saw.

_“Avec ces paroles, ton Maître je serai,_

_Avec ces paroles, ma volonté tu obéiras,_

_Avec ces paroles, ma vie sera tienne à protéger,_

_Seule ma mort te libérera.”_

_With these words, your Master I will be,_

_With these words, my will you’ll obey,_

_With these words, my life will be yours to protect,_

_Only in my death will you be freed._

The book glowed for a second and felt hot in her hands. The howling of the wolves was almost upon her. She quickly put the book in her satchel as she struggled to get back on her feet. Her limbs were getting stiff because of the cold since she wasn’t dressed for this temperature. All of a sudden she heard a deep low growl, the sound right in front of her. “ _The wolves! I’m done for!”_ Lifting her head, she met a pair of golden eyes. Before her brain could process what she saw, the beast jumped toward her. Her survival instinct took over and she scrambled backward fast. Her feet slipped on a patch of ice and she fell, her head hitting a rock. As she lost consciousness, she had two thoughts. One, the beast had jumped _over_ her and second, as impossible as it was, the beast was a huge tiger. 

______________

Poppy slowly woke up, feeling satin against her cheek. This was the most comfortable bed she had ever slept in. _Wait a second... A bed?_ Poppy sat up straight and looked around. She screamed as she met a pair of pale blue eyes. An older man sat next to the bed, looking at her.

“Please, do not panic. You are safe here.” The man raised his hands in front of him. “I found you unconscious in the woods and brought you in my home to protect you from the cold and the wolves. You’ve been here for the past two days”

Poppy lifted her hand and felt the back of her head. She winced as her fingers found a bandaged cut. She felt uneasy about the man. He looked benevolent enough, but something was missing from his story. What about the dead man? Or the tiger she saw? She decided not to bring up the dead man, her instincts telling her it might seal a fate she wanted to avoid. 

“Not only the wolves, but the tiger as well.” 

The man smiled at her, like one smiled at a child. “A tiger? I think you must have hurt your head more than I thought.” 

Poppy wanted to argue that she knew what she saw, but she caught a glint in his eyes that made her reconsider. She also realised that she was alone in a mansion with a man she knew nothing about. She would be smart not to antagonize him. 

She smiled at him, “You must be right. It was probably another wolf. I mean, it was hard to see in that snowstorm. Thank you for saving me. May I know the name of my savior? I am called Poppy.”

“You’re most welcomed, dear. You’re lucky I found you when I did, you were on the brink of death. You’re alive because of me.” The man stood up and walked toward the door. “Now that I know you are fine, I will leave you to rest in peace. You are to join me for dinner tonight. Please look in the wardrobe for clean clothes.” He was about to close the door behind him, when he turned to look at her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Poppy. I’m Vincent.” 

Poppy found herself alone, finally. The bedroom she was in was almost the size of the little cottage she shared with her father in the village outside of the forest. Everything screamed opulence. Who was Vincent? What did he want with her? Was she a prisoner in his mansion? She carefully got up, feeling a little dizzy from the blood loss. After a few moments, she felt strong enough to walk toward the wardrobe he had pointed out to her. It contained about a dozen dresses, all the same size and old fashioned. Turning away from the dresses, she walked to the door and tested the doorknob. She opened the door and looked in the hallway. To her surprise, she saw no one. She had half expected someone to guard her door. 

Walking in the hallway, she noticed that, like the room she was in, everything screamed money. From the lush carpet to the crystal chandeliers. She wondered how the rest of the mansion was. She reached a staircase and went down the marbled stairs. She found herself in a big hall. Everything was made of white marble, a huge red carpet covering the floor. On the other side of the hall were two big doors. Probably leading to the outside. Poppy was willing to take her chances with the snowstorm. She had seen warm clothes in the wardrobe. She just needed to grab her satchel… _My satchel! I haven’t seen it in the room I was in._ Had Vincent kept it to make sure she wouldn’t leave? It had been her father’s and was her most cherished possession. There wasn’t anything of value inside. Could she leave without it? It broke her heart to think about it. She knew her father would tell her to forget about it, her life was more precious than an old bag. That her memories of him were inside her, not inside that old, worn out bag. 

With tears in her eyes, she walked toward the doors. She was halfway there when she heard the voice of Vincent coming her way. Her instincts were screaming to not let him find her. She saw a little hallway to her right and she ran in that direction. As she arrived at the end of the hallway, she looked around and saw nowhere to hide. There was only one door in front of her and she could still hear Vincent coming closer. She didn’t know where he was going and didn’t want to risk him finding her. Opening the door, she went inside. The room was dark and the tiny window didn’t allow much light in the room. She waited a few moments for her vision to adapt to the darkness. She could make out a bed underneath the window. There was someone sleeping on the bed, facing her. She was about to leave before the person woke up and caused her troubles when she saw something familiar on the floor, underneath the bed. _My bag! Oh my God! I can’t leave it there!_

Poppy walked cautiously toward the bed and slowly kneeled. She reached out and grabbed her bag. When she lifted herself up, she met a pair of golden eyes. She was about to scream when a hand went on the back of her neck and she was pulled against a muscled chest. 

“ _Shhh_. Don’t make a sound, you don’t want anyone to find you here with me. I will not hurt you.” 

Poppy relaxed and nodded her head, she believed him. He had a deep voice that she found strangely soothing. He let her go and she was finally able to have a good look at him. She was shocked when she recognized him.

“ _TORA!”_ She immediately covered her mouth with her hands. He looked at her sternly. She would almost hear him scolding her in his mind. 

“Tora… Is it really you? You’ve been gone for almost 5 years! Were you here this whole time? What happened to you?” 

Poppy stopped to breathe. He was here, in front of her. She couldn’t wrap her head around it. They used to play together as children. Well, he used to look after her and the younger kids as he was a little older. She remembered growing up and developing a crush on him. She wasn’t discreet about it either, following him around like a lovesick puppy. The whole village had known and everyone had joked about it. Except for him. He had always looked at her kindly, never teasing her about her crush. She remembered how one night, during the harvest fair, she had seen him sitting alone in a barn. He must have been waiting for his date to arrive. She had walked up to him and when he had smiled at her, she had leaned down and kissed him. She had felt his hands on her shoulders and, afraid he would push her back, she had broken the kiss and run outside. She still remembered the surprise in his golden eyes. It had been the last time she had seen him. She had been 16 years old. For the longest time, she had felt guilty, thinking he had left because of her, because of what had done that night.

“You grew up fine, Poppy,” Tora said sadly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Lots of things happened that night. I was hunted down and captured to serve Vincent. He’s been “collecting” shifters for years, from what I was able to see. ”

“Shifters?” Poppy had heard of such beings. When she was young, her father had told her how their population had been decimated. They had been hunted down, captured and killed as a sign of power. Poppy looked at Tora, really looked at him, and something clicked in her mind.

“The tiger! It was you! You’re the one who saved me in the forest!” At first she was all excited, but then realised that he had never told her he was a shifter. She felt hurt. “You never told me, why? Didn’t you trust me?”

“Poppy, please stop.” He gently caressed her cheek. “You have to understand, this is not something we go and announce to everyone. It’s something we will only share with our mate. I never wanted to keep it from you, but the timing was never right. Then, I ended up here and wasn’t able to escape.”

Poppy’s heart almost burst out her chest. _Is he saying I’m his...mate?_ She was too scared to ask, too scared of the answer. What if he didn’t mean it that way? She could only look at him, tears rolling down her cheeks and onto his hand.

“Poppy, you need to listen to me carefully. Vincent is dangerous, you need to tread carefully with him if you want to get away.”

“But-”

“No buts! He will try to seduce you, control you. You have to let him believe it’s working, flatter his ego. You must not let him know you read the spell. We will let him believe he still controls us and I will get you out, but I can’t be worrying about you.”

“But... what about you? Tora, I will not leave without you!” 

“ _Avec ces paroles, mon maître tu seras._ With these words, my master you will be. _”_ He smiled at her sadly. “The book you found, that spell you read… I am bound to you. I couldn’t leave you even if I wanted to.”

“The book!” Poppy grabbed her satchel and looked inside. “Oh no! It isn’t there. It must have fallen out when I slipped. What is that book? What do you mean, you are bound to me?”

Tora briefly explained it was an old spell book, one Vincent had used to subdue the shifters and make them do his bidding. One of the servants had stolen the book and ran away, wanting to bound the shifters to himself, but he didn’t know how to read and Vincent had sent Tora and other shifters to kill him and bring back the book. By the time Tora arrived, the poor man was already dead and Poppy had bound the shifters to herself. Poppy’s head was spinning with his revelations.

“Does it mean I can free you all? The last sentence of the spell hinted as much.”

“Free us? What last sentence? Poppy, I’ve read that book so many times. Vincent kept taunting us with it. We were never able to rebel against him because we were bound to protect him. Now, we won’t rebel in fear he might harm you and we will die protecting you.”

Tora stood up, the idea of Vincent harming her clearly affecting him. Poppy couldn’t help but think he really looked like a tiger in a cage as he went around in circles in the tiny room. She clearly remembered that last sentence and wondered what it all meant. She decided she would do anything in her power to free Tora, to free them all. Nobody would die for her sake. Standing up, she walked to him and placed her hand on his chest, stopping him.

“I need to go back, I am expected for dinner. Don’t worry, I will be properly impressed and seduced.” Tora growled deeply at her words. “Only for show, of course. You, better than anyone else, know where my heart lies.”

Tora put his hand on the back of her neck and brought her roughly against him, leaning down and kissing her deeply, his passion barely contained. It was over as quickly as it started. Tora herded her toward the door and looked down at her with a smirk, slapping her ass playfully.

“Go get ready for your dinner date.”

______________

Poppy sat at one end of a big table, wearing one of the vintage dresses from the wardrobe. Vincent was sitting at the other end, sipping his glass of wine. Food was covering the table, too much food for only the two of them. Was he expecting more people to join them? A young man came to the table and started cutting one of the meat plates. He looked young, a teenager, and was tall and lanky. He shyly looked at her and smiled. Poppy felt a thug in her heart. He was another shifter, she was certain of it. She could feel it deep in her soul. She quietly thanked him as he brought her a plate and smiled when he blushed.

“What’s your name?” she asked him.

“I-I’m Seth, ma'am.” He was looking down and speaking so softly, she had to lean toward him to understand him. “I’m a wolf, ma’am”

She touched his arm, “Please, call me Poppy.”

Before he could reply, a chair being pushed could be heard and Vincent made his way to them. Seth quickly returned to cut more meat to prepare Vincent’s plate. 

“Getting acquainted with my servants, I see.” Vincent sat next to her and, though he smiled at her, his eyes spoke of his displeasure. 

“I’m sorry if I wasn’t supposed to acknowledge the help. I’m but a small village girl, you’ll have to excuse my lack of propriety.”

“Do not worry dearest Poppy. If you allow me, I will instruct you in the ways of the world so you don’t make the same blunder twice.”

Poppy gritted her teeth and nodded her head at Vincent. Dinner was a long and excruciating affair. As Tora predicted, Vincent was putting on the charm, trying to get her in his good grace. He kept giving her backhanded compliments, treating her like she was stupid and uneducated. While it got old fast, she played the part, making herself appear like a poor illiterate girl unlikely to have read the book. 

As the dinner came to an end, Vincent stood up and presented his arm to her. Smiling, she put her hand on it and he walked her out of the dining room. He showed her the rest of the mansion, talking about his riches, when they passed two enormous glass doors that showed a majestic outdoor garden. When she spotted a pair of golden eyes, she stopped. Vincent looked down at her, clearly annoyed at being interrupted and wondering why she had stopped him.

“Ah, I see you like my garden? Would you like a tour? I have some of the rarest exotic plants in the world.”

Poppy could only nod her head vigorously, afraid that he might find her lack of eagerness suspicious. The garden was truly a wonder. She didn’t have to fake being impressed. Flowers and trees everywhere, it was truly paradise. She looked all around, trying to catch a glimpse of Tora. She could hear birds chirping. Up in the sky, she saw two eagles circling above them. She thought she saw a black panther on a tree branch. She could feel the shifters all around her, their presence soothing her and making her feel safe. When they arrived near a rose bush, Vincent picked one rose and put it behind her ear, his fingers lingering on her cheek. 

“A rose is still majestic even if it grew in dirt.” 

His fingers slid down, caressing her cheek and lifting her chin. Poppy had a moment of pure panic as he slowly bent down, going for a kiss. Just as he was to make contact, the rose bush rustled making her jump back in fright. A tiger appeared in front of them, making her squeal with delight. Vincent frowned at the tiger.

“Go away and do not bother us again!”

The tiger turned around and started walking away when Poppy couldn’t help but stop him. 

“No! Don’t go!” 

Immediately, she realised her blunder. Tora had stopped since he had to obey her. She ran to him, kneeling by his side and grabbed his powerful neck. She whispered in his ear to go and turned toward Vincent, smiling prettily at him.

“Oh no, please Vincent! It’s the first time I've seen one and tigers are my favorite animals. Can you please call it back for a little while? It will make me _very_ happy.”

Even from a distance, she was able to hear Tora’s low growl. Vincent stood there, watching her suspiciously. Poppy stood and went to Vincent, taking his arm and pressing it against her bosom.

“It’s fine if you don’t want such a dangerous animal too close to us. I guess they can be unpredictable? I am just happy I got the chance to see one up close once in my life and I have to thank you for this opportunity”. 

Vincent snickered, “Dangerous? That beast is as dangerous as a declawed kitten.” He whistled, “Come here, boy! The lady wants to pet you.”

Tora turned around and went to Poppy, sitting next her. She knew he was seething because he refused to look at her or touch her. She caressed his head, loving the feeling of his soft fur between her fingers. Still Tora didn’t make a move. She sighed and told Vincent she was ready to continue their walk. His garden was truly remarkable and once they were back at the mansion, he walked her to her room and, thankfully, only kissed her forehead and left. She waited a few minutes, to make sure he was far enough, then exited her room. She went down the stairs and into that small hallway she had found earlier. Once inside Tora’s room, she was disappointed to see it was empty. They needed to talk about what had happened in the garden, she didn’t want to have him angry at her. She needed to feel his arms around her for one night. Tomorrow she would put her plan in motion and didn’t know if she would have a chance again. She laid down on his bed, hugging his pillow to her chest. It smelled like him too, which brought tears in her eyes, and she fell asleep.

She slowly came back to herself, noticing right away the warm and firm body against hers. A hand was slowly caressing her hair and she couldn’t help snuggling closer to the body. In doing so, she was made aware of the hard erection pressed against her belly. Almost purring, she slipped a hand between them, then inside his pants and took hold of the very large member. She gently squeezed and moved up and down. He moved against her hand, following her rhythm. 

“Mmmm, Tora…”

He laughed and growled at the same time. “ _Now_ you’re making sure it’s me?” 

With his hand, he lifted her nightdress, his fingers trailing her thighs and when he reached her round ass, he pressed her against him. At the same time, he bent his head and licked her neck, going up until he bit gently on her earlobe. Poppy closed her eyes and gave in to the sensations.

“Tora, I’m sorry.” She sounded short of breath. Tora looked at her puzzled.

“I don’t know what you did that needed an apology, but if it’s how you apologize, please keep doing it.”

“About what happened in the garden. Tora, I am so sorry Vincent treated you that way.”

Tora froze. “Poppy please, his actions are his own and you don’t have to apologize for him. One day he will pay for everything he did to us. You did more than you know when you took on the bond.” 

Poppy felt like an idiot as he lowered her nightdress. Why had she brought this up now? It could have waited later, much later. He was clearly not in the mood anymore, his cock going limp in her hand. She didn’t want the night to finish this way. She wanted her one night with him. She pushed him on his back and straddled him. Lifting her nightdress over her head, she took it off and threw it on the floor. As he lay there unmoving, she suddenly felt self conscious. Her courage had stopped at getting naked it would seem. She crossed her arms on her chest. Tora put his hand on her arms, his golden eyes glowing.

“Is this what you really want, sweetheart?”

“More than anything,” she whispered.

He lowered her arms, placing them on his pectorals. He felt so hard under her touch. He grabbed her hips and moved her along the length of his hard shaft until the tip of his cock was at her moist entrance. Poppy moaned in anticipation and reached between them, to guide him slowly inside her. She was so hot and ready for him, she had been for years. She had kept herself pure for him. She closed her eyes and impaled herself completely on his cock. She winced as she felt the pain of losing her virginity. Tora froze, realizing what she had done. 

“Poppy, you’re killing me!” He said through gritted teeth. “Now, let me make you feel so good you’ll forget your name and just remember mine.”

He lifted her and brought her above his face. With his tongue he teased her irritated flesh. Poppy gasped, she had never felt anything like this. It felt burning hot and so smooth at the same time. Her muscles were contracting everything his tongue went over her clitoris. He would lick and suck her sensitive organ, then he would lick lower and penetrate her. After a few rounds of this treatment, Poppy was about to explode. When his hands touched her nipples, pinching them lightly, she screamed as her first orgasm hit her. Tora caught her as she slipped to the side. He lowered her on himself and she was so wet, from him and herself, that he didn’t have any resistance. He kissed her passionately, wrapping his arms around her. She tasted herself on his lips, on his tongue and there was a faint metallic taste, a remnant of her lost hymen.

“Did you think you were done, sweetheart?” he asked against her lips. “The night is still young.”

When she felt him move his hips against her, her passion ignited once again. She thought she didn’t have energy left after that shattering orgasm, but he proved her wrong. She couldn’t describe how it felt to be completely filled by him. Every time he pulled out and pushed back in, he brought her closer to heaven again. She moved faster against him, wanting more, always more. He happily obliged her, making her scream his name over and over again. Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore and roared as he came inside her. She let herself go limp on him and he didn’t let her go. They both fell asleep, exhausted and sated.

______________

Poppy woke up before him, she was still on top of him. She very carefully got up, got dressed and left his room. She knew she wouldn’t come back, if everything went according to her plan. She had left her stachel with Tora, he knew what it meant for her and it was her hope he would think she was coming back.

As she pushed the main doors, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around, she found Seth behind her. She was horrified to see if half of his face was swollen and one of his eyes was bruised shut. She lightly touched his face and he hissed in pain but didn’t move.

“Oh Seth, I am so sorry. It’s all my fault, I shouldn’t have talked to you.” Poppy felt like crying. So many were suffering because of Vincent. “I promise you, I will free you all.”

Seth tried to smile, “I know Poppy. That’s why I’m here, I’m going with you and before you argue with me, Vincent asked me to keep an eye on you at all times since he doesn’t trust you yet.” Seeing her blush, he couldn’t help but add, “Don’t worry, I didn’t see anything last night, even though I could hear a whole lot!” 

Laughing he opened the front doors and had let her pass. First thing Poppy noticed was the snow had melted overnight and the sky was turning dark gray. A storm was coming their way. She hoped the book would still be in the forest where she had slipped and fell. She told Seth what she was looking for and he confirmed he had been one of the wolves she had heard that day. He told her the same story Tora had told her. Vincent had ordered them to catch up with the servant who had stolen the book and they were to kill him on sight. Seth then surprised her by telling her it had been Tora who had picked her up and brought her to the mansion, but before he had been able to bring her secretly to his room, Vincent had seen him. Upon seeing the tender look on Tora’s face, he had snatched her from his arms and said he would take care of her.

Poppy followed Seth who, after their discussion, had changed into his wolf form to better track the dead servant. By the time they found him, it had started to rain hard. She dropped to her knees and searched through the mud in hope to find the book. Suddenly she saw it next to a big rock. Probably the same rock where she had hit her head not so long ago. As she picked up the book, she heard loud thunder rumbling. Now that she had the book, she read the last line again. 

_Seule ma mort te libérera. Only in my death will you be freed._

This was the key, this was her plan. The fact that Tora had told her he wasn’t able to see it nagged at the back of her mind. It felt like a riddle and had always been bad at solving riddles. Her father always told her to stop overthinking everything, the answer was always in front of us. So what did it all mean? What was right in front of her? Lightning struck a tree a few feet away from her, setting it on fire. 

“That’s it! I solved it!” Poppy turned around to look for Seth but found Vincent instead. He had a pistol pointed at her heart.

“I don’t know what you think you’ve solved, little girl, but you will give me that book if you want to live.” He looked disheveled, his clothes and hair wet from the rain. Gone was the polished facade. He looked like a psychopath on a rampage. His gaze went down on the dead man.

“I should have known that was the reason why my shifters brought you back instead of that corpse. That stupid piece of shit never did anything right. Stealing that book from me without even being able to read it.” Turned his attention to Poppy. “But you, little girl, you’re not just some dumb village girl, are you? You were able to read it and bind them to you.”

Poppy held the book tightly against her chest, staying silent. There wasn’t anything she could say that would play in her favor. In the corner of her eyes, she saw the burning tree and slowly, without looking away from Vincent, she stepped back toward it. 

“DON’T YOU FUCKIN’ MOVE, YOU WHORE!” 

He moved his finger to pull the trigger but as he did so, a loud growl could be heard and an orange blur brought Vincent down and started to maul him. Seth had also moved in front of her, ready to take that bullet. Looking around, Poppy saw the other shifters ready to protect her with their lives. Tears rolled down her cheeks. They would suffer no more. 

“Tora! Stop, don’t kill him. He’s not worth it.” 

As she commanded him, Tora had stopped, but still had his paw on Vincent’s bloodied face. Poppy looked at him and all the shifters. She lifted the book, so they could all see it.

“Vincent never told you, but in this book is also the key to freeing you all. The last sentence you were never able to see. The one sentence from the book to it’s master. Only in my death will you be freed.”

Vincent started laughing, coughing blood at the same time. “The dumb village girl will die to save them all! I didn’t even have to kill you! I should have just waited for you kill yourself and pick up the book after!” He laughed even louder, spitting blood once more. He tried to turn his head toward Tora. “Hear that loverboy? She hated being with you so much, she can’t stand more than one night!”

Tora growled and pressed his paw on his face, shutting him up. He looked up at Poppy, then at the tree on fire, then at Poppy again in horrible comprehension. Leaving Vincent and started running toward Poppy, intent on stopping her.

“STOP! All of you stop! It is not what you think. I figured it out, I solved the book’s riddle.” 

Poppy was smiling through her tears. She walked to the fire and threw the book in. “If I’m right, this is a sentence from the book to the master. Only the master can see it, the book is telling me only if I destroy it, will the spell be lifted.” 

Tora shifted back to his human form and ran to Poppy, picking her up in his arms and kissing her desperately. Poppy caressed his face, wet from the rain and his tears. 

“Let me go, Tora.” She said against his lips.

Tora froze, but didn’t put her down. “No, never.”

___________

Little Cara was fast asleep by the time her mother read the last sentence. Closing the book, she kissed her daughter’s forehead and got up, only to see her husband in the doorway, gazing lovingly at his wife and child.

“Why do you have to call me a beast, wife? I mean I wasn’t even the villain in this.”

“No, but being a beast has nothing to do with your soul. I don’t want our daughter to be afraid of the term when she will first shift.”

Poppy walked to her husband and kissed him tenderly. As he had promised her on that day, he had never let her go.


End file.
